The captain, George Clinton, will be accompanied by a crew collectively known as Parliament Funkadelic. The awaiting crowd will chant, "Make my funk the P. Funk / I wants to get funked up."

Since 1975, when the album "Mothership Connection" was released, touchdowns have morphed into rituals with 15 or so musicians, singers and dancers so mesmerizing that the wall between performer and audience has given way to mass partying. Concerts can stretch nonstop for three hours or more.

Clinton was born in Kannapolis and lived in Virginia and Washington, D.C., before his family settled in Plainfield, N.J. As a teenager, he formed doo-wop vocal group The Parliaments with Clinton as the lead singer. They began making a cappella records in the mid-'50s but it wasn't until 1967 that they had a hit, "(I Wanna) Testify," later covered by Roger Taylor of Queen and Stevie Ray Vaughan. By this time the singers had added a band that eventually changed its name to Funkadelic or Parliament Funkadelic. (The two group names have been used singularly and together without a definitive explanation.) Over the next five years, an additional 10 songs scored in the Top 100 on the R&B charts.

Through the '70s and early '80s the Parliament Funkadelic crew created tunes that soon became classics. "Tear the Roof Off the Sucker (Give Up the Funk)," "Dr. Funkenstein," "One Nation Under a Groove" and "Cosmic Slop" are some of the tunes that charted. But the success of the band was most evident in its ecstatic following and the revolutionary impact it had on rock and R&B.

Visual effects have been essential to both the reputation and popularity of P. Funk, with costuming and props as the opening surprise at all Parliament Funkadelic appearances. Clinton has had pink, green and yellow hair. At one time the band entered from a large spaceship, and there are reports from the early days of Clinton appearing nude. Wigs, hats, masks, spears, feathers, giant eyelashes and even a baby bottle often made the spectacle match the music.

Clinton has a sweet, soulful vocal style that attracted R&B fans but the P. Funk sound quickly evolved into a bold, in-your-face combination of psychedelic rock, funk and R&B. The virtuosity of guitarist Eddie Hazel was explosive and emotional. Hazel remained a significant force in Funkadelic for more than two decades though he also played with other groups and had his own recordings. He died in 1992.

Another early Funkadelic member was keyboardist Bernie Worrell, who came to the funk from classical music training. Once Worrell added synthesizers to his keyboard talent, the P. Funk sound went cosmic. Today, Worrell's prowess on synthesizers is an essential element to students of the instruments.

Worrell left Parliament Funkadelic and worked with the Talking Heads in the '80s. His own jazz fusion bands and recordings remain popular. Worrell has rejoined the P. Funk crew on occasion but is not expected in Wilmington.

The P Funk member who made the biggest splash on his own is bassist Bootsy Collins. (He plays Ziggy's on Oct. 27). Another James Brown alumni, Collins' big bass playing is infectious while his stage persona is like that of a circus performer. He went out on his own, with a number of P. Funk players joining him, as the ultra funky Bootsy's Rubber Band in 1976. The group scored a hit with "Bootzilla."

There was a long, dry period for P. Funk in the '80s. But by the time the '90s came around, the group's music was more revered than ever because a new generation heard the Parliament Funkadelic tunes embedded in rap and hip-hop. "Atomic Dog" alone has been sampled 80 times. Among the artists who have taken grooves and melodies from P. Funk are Dr. Dre, OutKast, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Snoop Dogg. At one point in the '90s, Clinton was chasing down royalties from the many hits his group had helped make but never been paid for. Some returns have come from rappers appearing and recording with members of P. Funk.

With the exception of George Clinton, who will be in the collective Sunday night at Ziggy's is a mystery. Whoever shows up might not be performing under his or her own name. Star Child, Sir Nose and Caspar are some of the characters band members have created. Reports are that the music and spectacle remain captivating. The play list is expansive – as it must be for a three-hour set – and visual stimulation is assured.

The one unavoidable change is that the P. Funk cast has aged. But have they mellowed?

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